Top 5 Foreign Celebrities Who Recently Became Russian Nationals

American actor and producer Steven Seagal received Russian citizenship on November 3, 2016, per a decree from Vladimir Putin. The 64-year-old actor said that he has Russian roots on his maternal side. He expressed an interest to start a business in the Sakhalin region in Russia's Far East.

The “Green Card” actor, who took a stand against taxes and renounced his French citizenship in 2012, got his Russian passport in January 2013. Depardieu also received his registration in the capital of Mordovia, Saransk and an apartment in Grozny from the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov.

American mixed martial artist also known as “The Snowman” received Russian citizenship in December, 2015. The 44-year-old fought his first fight under the Russian flag on Christmas Day, losing to Cameroon’s Donald Njatah in the town of Khimki near Moscow. He said when he came to Russia for the first time; it was “love at first sight.”

Ex-world champion, boxer Roy Jones Jr. received a Russian passport in October 2015. Jones said he liked to come to Russia so much that he decided to change his citizenship and “build a bridge” between his former country (US) and the present one.

In summer of 2011, American snowboarder Vic Wild married Russian beauty Alaine Zavarzin, in the spring of next year Wild became a Russian national. During the Olympics in Sochi, Wilde became a double champion and his wife won a bronze medal.